Paragon's End
by AzureSpider
Summary: I know that everyone else has done this already, but here it is anyway: my own improved ending to my personal Shepard's story. Shep is a male Paragon/Spacer/War Hero. Shepard/Miranda. Enjoy my own ending to the amazing Mass Effect trilogy!


Paragon's End

**Author's Note: I don't think I need to explain why I'm doing this. So instead I'm just going to give my Shepard's background. If you've read my other ME fan-fics, that will improve your reading experience.**

**Commander Daniel Shepard**  
**Background: Spacer War Hero**  
**Alignment: Paragon**  
**Class: Soldier in 1 and 2, ascended to Sentinel in 3.**  
**Love Interest: Miranda**  
**Virmire Survivor: Kaidan**  
**Fallen Party Members: Ashley, Mordin, Legion, and Thane**  
**Wrex is alive**

**Enjoy my own personal end to the epic Mass Effect trilogy.**

It was the single most painful thing he had ever experienced in his life.

The blast the Harbringer struck him with should have vaporized him on the spot. Killed him instantly. For a moment Shepard found himself vastly preferring that fate as the shot made his entire body experience a fierce, burning pain the likes of which he had never experienced before. Even his death three years earlier could not compare to the agony the shot left him in.

He shot one last desperate look around as he was being shot. Garrus and Javik had survived as well, Shepard having taken the brunt of the shot while his two companions had to pull back. But the rest of Hammer Company wasn't so lucky. Dead Alliance soldiers were everywhere, along with bodies of other races. Shepard could see Wrex and Kirrahe off in the distance continue to lead their Krogan and Salarian forces, but every Alliance soldier was now a charred skeleton or a pile of ash.

_One more thing these monsters will answer for _Shepard thought darkly. He forced himself to continue standing as he miraculously weathered the shot from the Harbringer. His Blood Dragon Armor had been melted like wax, and as he looked this way and that, trying to see which of his allies were now dead and which were still living, the pain from the blast began to grow greater still, until Shepard screamed in pain again as a bright white light consumed him.  
-X-  
It was a strange sight he was greeted with upon waking up. Stark white, with gray-ish colored skies and a pleasant feeling of warmth surrounding the area. Shepard had no idea where he was, only that he felt perfectly fine, and that his Blood Dragon Armor had seemingly been restored, minus the helmet.

Rising to his feet, Shepard looked around curiously. The "room" or whatever it was he was in was just empty whiteness as far as the eye could see. Before he could speculate any further as to where exactly he was, or what to do, a voice he never thought he'd hear again called out to him: "Hey skipper"

Shepard turned around and saw to his complete amazement Ashley Williams standing there in the flesh, still wearing the Phoenix Armor he had first seen her in but with her hair now let down instead of in the tight bun she had worn it in when alive. She smiled warmly at him. "Its good to see you again…"

"Ash? What's going on? You died…"

"Yeah" Ashley said. "Bummer. But I knew where I was going when I died, so I kept my cool to the end."

"Wait a minute…" Shepard said horrified. "Am I dead? Again?"

Ashley smiled and just chuckled. "No skipper, just passing through. Your time hasn't come _yet_"

Shepard turned his head to one side and saw that Ashley wasn't alone. Out of the white came three familiar faces that he had lost recently.

"Thane? Mordin? Legion?"

"Shepard-Commander" the latter said simply.

"So I guess the Geth really did have souls after all"

Legion nodded. "Yes it would seem so"

Mordin smiled and went up to Shepard and shook his head.

"Ah, Shepard good to see you again. Sorry I couldn't be there for final push, Genophage work came first. How is Kirrahe doing?" He asked that last part in a pleasent matter-of-fact manner as if they were two old friends talking over lunch.

"He's being his usual cloaca self" Shepard replied simply, a tone that betrayed the playfulness of the reply.

Mordin smiled and nodded. "Ah yes. Good, good. Expected as much, knew he couldn't resist one last speech…"

Shepard turned to Thane: "I told you you wouldn't be alone long"

Thane shook his head. "No. Though it does pain me to see old friends join me before their time. I have been getting to know Ashley Williams well since my soul has come to this place. She speaks highly of you"

"I'm not surprised" Shepard said, recalling how Ashley had practically worshipped him in life.

"I've been watching you and praying for you every day since I died" Ashley said resolutely. "I wasn't crazy about you working with Cerberus, but I understand it. You needed to stop the Collectors. I don't judge you"

Shepard smiled in response to that. It was nice to hear that Ashley had never given up on him, even after death. A part of him now regretted leaving her to die on Virmire more than ever.

Mordin spoke up again: "Yes, yes, collectors. Here with us too, though not Collectors anymore. Back to being Protheans. Fascinating to learn what their culture was like, wish I could have seen it in person…"

"Anyway," Ashley said, returning to Shepard. "Its been nice to get to see to you again skipper, but its time you go back down there and finish this fight"

Shepard sighed deeply. "I know Ash. Its just that, well…."

"Well what? You're not dead skipper remember? All you need to do is activate the Crucible and the Reapers are gone for good. You're close Shepard. Closer than you've ever been before. You can't give up now! Not after everything you..._we _have sacrificed"

"I know Ash. And I don't plan to. Its just…." He sighed again. "…so many have died already. Honestly there are times when it feels like the weight of everything that's resting on my shoulders is going to fall down and crush me to death at any minute"

"The casualties of Harbringer's assault where fewer than you think" Thane said simply. "And even if they were not, their losses cannot stop you or deter you from your goal. I know you Shepard: you helped reunite me with my son before my passing. You led us all to the Collector Base and came out without a single soul lost. You are the one who must finish what has been started"

Shepard nodded. "I know…thanks Thane"

Shepard looked at his four fallen friends, taking each one's appearance in for what he knew would be the last time in a (hopefully) very long while. Ashley, who had been first to go as the victim of an impossible choice. Mordin and Legion, who had sacrificed themselves for greater goods, and Thane, whose illness had finally taken him months after it should have. They had all been such great friends and allies.

Then, he asked: "So how do I get out of here?"

Ashley smiled and Shepard's ears picked up familiar youthful laughter. Turning around, he saw the child who had seen be killed on Earth, the one who had been haunting his nightmares, running off in the distance, playing with his toy ship and laughing, as he had when Shepard first saw him.

Shepard turned back around to face his fallen friends. Ashley simply nodded to him.

"Go get em' skipper"

Shepard smiled and nodded.

"Good-bye for now"

Mordin nodded and smiled. "Yes, yes. Good-bye for now. So long Shepard, wish you luck, will be running tests on sea shells when you return"

Shepard smiled and nodded and then ran off after the child, who continued to laugh, but this time heartily and with life, rather then the empty, disembodied laughter from the nightmares. Shepard followed him through the whiteness, as he did, he heard Ashley's voice again: "Shepard"

Then Thane's: "Shepard"

Mordin's: "Shepard"

Legion's: "Shepard-Commander"

And others besides. He heard Jenkins, Pressley, Kal'reegar. Everyone he had been unable to save was saying his name, but not in an accusing tone. Rather they were saying it as if they were encouraging him, urging him to keep going no matter what.

So he did. He ran after the child, who finally stopped and turned around, as he had in Shepard's nightmares. The child smiled at him, and then, rather then bursting into flames was consumed in a bright white light that blinded Shepard.  
-X-  
Shepard gasped and opened his eyes, his entire body wracked with pain. Looking around at the scene that slowly came into focus, he saw that everyone around him was dead, save Garrus and Javik, who were nowhere to be found. Seeing the beam just up ahead, Shepard mustered up all the strength that he could, and limped towards it.

His body was badly injured and his armor had returned to its melted and destroyed state. He was in a bad way to say the very least. But he managed to reach the beam all the same, unhindered by any more Reaper forces.

What followed was a rushing sensation the likes of which he had never experienced before. He felt as if he were moving at the speed of light. As it is, he probably was. Also, as it was his own, injured body, without even armor to protect him, the trip up wasn't exactly a pleasant one. But Shepard endured all the same. He had to. He had promised Ashley and the others that had died for the war against the Reapers that he would see this through to the end.

When things came back into focus, he found himself in a dark room with piles of dead humans and Keepers busy at work as if the bodies weren't even there. The sight of all the dead humans piled up and treated like garbage disgusted him, so Shepard shut his eyes tightly and forced himself up. As he did, he heard a familiar voice:

"Shepard?"

"Anderson…you up here too?"

"Followed you up, but we didn't come out in the same place…at least I don't think we did. What's your surrounding like?

Shepard forced himself fully to his feet, his body aching in protest as he did.

"You Okay?" Anderson asked.

"I feel like death" Shepard said bluntly. "But I'm moving"

He limped forward, hand still clutching his Paladin and eyes taking in his grotesque surroundings. "It's dark…there's human remains and corpses scattered around"

"Sounds familiar. I'm in a dark hallway…reminds me of your description of the Collector Base"

Shepard chuckled humorlessly. "Makes sense"

"You think they're making a Reaper in here?" Anderson asked.

"Sure" Shepard said simply, then adding with disgust: "they round them up on Earth, then send the people up here to be processed"

"Goddamn abominations" Anderson growled. "I'm going to keep moving. The sooner we blow these bastards back to hell the better"

Shepard silently agreed and limped forward. As he did, Anderson said: "The tubes don't go on forever…but where the hell are we?"

Shepard nodded in agreement to Anderson's bewilderment. "Yeah, this doesn't look like any part of the Citadel I've been to"

"Whoa…Shepard, one of the walls here just realigned itself. The place is shifting. Changing…there's a chasm here. And more hallways like the one I was in"

Continuing to limp forward, Shepard came to a pair of double doors.

"I think I'm near an exit" he said.

Advancing forward some more, the double doors opened, and Shepard was greeted to a part of the Citadel he had never seen before. Making his way down a steep ramp past more human corpses, Shepard could see off in the distance what looked like a ramp leading to some kind of control panel.

"Where do you think you're at?" Anderson asked.

"I think I just found that chasm you were talking about…"

"Yes…I see something…a control panel maybe…"

"Yeah, I think I see something like that too."

"Makes sense, you're probably closer to it. Get over there, I'll be right behind you"

Shepard nodded, and advanced towards it as quickly as his injured body would allow. Sure enough, what he saw was indeed a ramp leading up to a control panel. But as Shepard attempted to access it, he heard an all-too familiar voice, and unlike Andersons it wasn't a friends: "I underestimated you once again Shepard"

Shepard turned around and saw the Illusive Man walking towards him, his face now severely affected by his Reaper indoctrination. It was eerily reminiscent of both Saren and the unmasked Cerberus Husk trooper Shepard had found on Mars. But the Illusive Man managed to look even worse then both of them. Though his voice was the same, he looked outright diseased, and parts of his flesh looked like it had been completely melted away. And Shepard also couldn't help but notice that he was having some trouble walking.

"What are you doing here?" Shepard demanded.

"I warned you. Control is the means to survival. Control of the Reapers…and you, if necessary"

"_They're _controlling _**you!**_" Anderson's voice snapped in defiance.

Shepard whipped around to see that the good admiral had finally arrived on the scene and now had his gun trained on the Illusive Man, who just waved a hand dismissively at his accusation.

"I don't think so Admiral"

"Controlling me is a hell of a lot different then controlling a Reaper" Shepard growled.

"Have a little faith" the Illusive Man said simply. "Do you know that when humanity discovered the Mass Relays, when we learned that there was more to the galaxy than we imagined, there were some who thought the relays should be destroyed. They were scared of what we'd find. Terrified of what we might let in"

He turned his back to Shepard and stared out at the interior of the room they were in.

"But _look _at what humanity has achieved…since that discovery, we've advanced more than the past 10,000 years combined!"

Then, adding more calmly: "And the Reapers will do the same for us again. A thousand fold even. But, only if we can harness their ability to control"

"Bullshit" Anderson spat. "We destroy them, or they destroy us"

"And _waste _this opportunity?" the Illusive Man asked incredulous. "NEVER!"

"You're playing with things you don't understand" Shepard said. "With power you _shouldn't_be able to use"

The Illusive Man seemed to hesitate for a moment before saying: "I…don't believe that. If we can control it, why shouldn't it be ours?" he asked, as if it were the most obvious and easily understood thing in the universe.

"Because we're _**not ready**_" Shepard growled defiantly.

The Illusive Man shook his head dismissively. "Come now. You don't seriously believe that do you? You, who for all your supposed tolerance of the alien races that have tried time and again to grind us into the dirt have always possessed a "humans first" mindset?"

It was true. Choosing to save the Council at the cost of Alliance ships aside, Shepard, for all his tolerance and compassion, always prioritized human lives above all others. But every race did this concerning members of its own. The Asari, the Turians, all of them. It was not racism. It was tribal instinct. Selfish perhaps, but not unsympathetically so. At least Shepard thought so.

Honestly I'm surprised that you never fully came to accept Cerberus..." the Illusive Man mused. "Especially concerning your...relationship with miss Lawson. I know that she would think that humanity is ready to become a force to be reckoned with, not a kowtowing democracy"

The Illusive Man's mentioning of Miranda struck a nerve. Not long ago he had had a short but emotional conversation with her via hologram, promising to come back and find her, so they could be together, live together. And he knew that she was down there somewhere, fighting desperately against the Reaper's hordes alongside all of his other friends and allies.

"Don't you _dare _bring Miranda into this" Shepard growled. "She knows what you are now. She's known ever since Aite. And _I _know that what you and Cerberus has done, _have _done, is _**nothing **_like my views or actions"

"This is the way humanity must evolve" he replied adamantly.

"There's always another way" Anderson said.

"I've dedicated my _life _to understanding the Reapers, and I know with certainty: the Crucible will allow me to control them!"

Shepard shook his head. He had always known that the Illusive Man was hopelessly deluded but this was a different thing entirely. But then again, that was what Reaper Indoctrination did to a mind. He had seen it with Saren and Benezia, he was seeing it again here.

"And then what?" Shepard asked. "You'll get your "human dominance"…" Shepard said the phrase with as much contempt as he possibly could. "…but what about every other race in the galaxy? Are they just supposed to burn? Or would you rather they all just bow down and worship you like a G-d?"

"A very tempting idea but you're missing the point as always" the Illusive Man replied condescendingly.

"No, _**you're **_the one who's blind and delusional" Shepard accused angrily. "I've _**seen **_what they've done to you"

"I took what I wanted from them!" the Illusive Man roared. "Made it my own! Don't you see? This isn't about me or you! This is about things so much bigger then all of us!"

"So the Reapers have also claimed" Shepard responded darkly. "They've told me whenever I've asked that their motives can't be understood or comprehended. But you know what? I don't believe them. I think that they're just amazingly arrogant sons of bitches who are contemptible of everyone and everything else. And that damn well includes you and me"

"Shepard is right" Anderson asserted. "Listen to yourself. You've become their latest puppet."

The Illusive Man ignored him and faced Shepard once more. "So who will _you _listen to Shepard? An old soldier stuck in his ways, only able to see the world down the barrel of a gun?"

"I think I'd prefer that to a deluded, self-absorbed sociopath like you" Shepard responded angrily. "We worked together to stop the Collectors. I can't say I enjoyed it, but back then you were at least an ally, however crooked. Now? You're just another Saren."

"Don't be naïve Shepard. Saren was a coward who joined the Reapers out of fear. But my goals are different then that. And what if your friend here is wrong? What if controlling the Reapers _is _the answer?"

"If we destroy the Reapers, _**this ends today. **_Right here, right now. But if you can't control them, which you _**can't **_then what? I've seen what those monsters are capable of. That's too much power for anyone. You, me, Anderson, the Council, anyone. I wouldn't trust controlling the Reapers to anybody."

"But I _**can control them**_!" the Illusive Man roared, now completely losing his temper and with it his usual façade of affability.

"Are you willing to bet humanity's life on it?" Shepard asked, seeing that he had the Illusive Man backing into a corner.

"I know it will work…" the Illusive Man said weakly. Shepard kept at it. He had him.

"You don't know for certain. And that gets at you doesn't it? I bet it drives you mad; the lack of certainty. Or maybe the knowledge that you really _can't _control them and you know it for a fact?"

The Illusive Man's expression grew uneasy and hesitant. Shepard made a weak smile. He was winning. He could see it in the man's artificial eyes. He had finally gotten through to him.

"I..."

But then, before the Illusive Man could speak again, no less than four sword blades burst out of the Illusive Man's chest. The perpetrator then lifted the Illusive Man's body over his, or its, head, revealing just who it was.

It was Kai Leng, Shepard could tell from the clothing (what was left of it) and the distinctive mask he wore. But he had been changed. Like Saren Arterius before him, his dead body had become a vessel with which one of the Reapers could personally engage Shepard in battle. And as had been the case with Saren the metamorphosis was hideous to behold: Kai-Leng's cybernetic legs had not only been exposed now that his pants had been torn up, they had also been changed, becoming longer and lankier, almost skeletal now, and with claws at the bottom in place of more human prosthetic feet. His chest was relatively intact, but even there a few of the ribs were now sticking out, as well as a yellow glow from the center, and his arms had been reduced to naught but bones now fused with wires and cables, and with what Shepard recognized as the broken blades of dead Cerberus Phantoms replacing all of his fingers. These were what he, or it, had used to mercilessly impale the Illusive Man with.

"You are failing" said the mutated Kai Leng in a voice that Shepard immediately recognized as Harbingers. "We will deal with this ourselves"

And with that, the Harbinger-possessed corpse hurled the Illusive Man's now dead body over the edge of the walkway where it went plummeting. Shepard fired some pistol shots at the Kai Leng Husk but it did no good. In spite of his mutated appearance, his agility was intact. He expertly dodged the pistol shots and with one hand fired a blast of fire (Harbinger's favorite trick when controlling a host body) that knocked Anderson over the edge of the walkway.

"ANDERSON!" Shepard shouted.

"I'm fine Shepard!" Anderson shouted, apparently still holding onto the edge. "Just stop that bastard and finish this!"

Nodding, Shepard resumed fire at the Kai-Leng husk, who moved out of the way and retaliated with more fireballs shot from what had once been Kai Leng's palm blaster. Rolling to avoid them, Shepard continued shooting until the Kai-Leng husk leaped towards him with unnatural momentum. Ducking out of the way as he came down, Shepard managed to avoid being decapitated, impaled, or dismembered, but also had his pistol disarmed by a swipe of one of the Kai Leng husk's sword-hands. Drawing his Tempest SMG, Shepard shot at the monstrosity as much as he could before the husk angrily swatted that weapon away as well and shot out another fire-ball from his palm gun that Shepard barely avoided in time.

Rolling backwards as the Kai Leng husk went at him, Shepard allowed his biotic abilities to flow and fired a Warp at his enemy. The blast collided directly with the Kai Leng husk's chest but it only staggered from the blow. It charged him once more, prompting Shepard to activate his tech armor before it could vivisect him. The orange holographic-like breastplate appeared just in time as the Kai Leng husk swung out with its sword hand only to have the blades repelled by the Tech Armor. Shepard made a slight grin of satisfaction. His favorite armor might be gone but he still had some protection.

"You continue to resist. Continue to keep up the irritating charade that this has become" came Harbinger's voice from the Kai Leng husk.

"What's that?" Shepard said as he dodged another attack and retrieved his fallen Tempest. "Irritating am I? Man it must sting to admit that" Shepard said. "You always did have an ego the size of a galaxy"

"Your defiance is inconsequential. The angry and empty insults of a child meddling in things he does not comprehend. Your defeat is assured."

"So you keep saying. And yet here I am. Sovereign got blown straight to hell here three years ago" Shepard said, dodging another swing from the Kai Leng husk as he continued to shoot at him with his Tempest. "It's only fitting that you die at the Citadel too"

"Your victory over Nazara was irrelevant and inconsequential. As is all resistance you have put up to this point. You will fail. It is inevitable"

Shepard responded by hurling another Warp that hit the Kai Leng husk right in the face. When the dust settled, the Kai Leng husk had lost what little remained of its flesh, as well as the visor. Now only a skull with glowing yellow eyes remained.

"Any damage you do to this body is also inconsequential"

Shepard responded with a wicked grin. "Good to know"

Then, without warning, Shepard charged forward, hurling another Warp as well as firing his Tempest until it ran out of ammo to keep the Kai Leng husk staggering back and on its toes. Popping out his Omni-Blade, he slashed out with as much force as he could muster, forcing his opponent to stagger back even more. The Kai Leng husk lashed out unexpectedly, leaving a deep, ugly cut on Shepard's arm that began to bleed profusely before he could yank it away. The Kai-Leng husk followed this up with a kick to the chest.

Shepard smothered a scream from his injuries and rolled to keep the Kai Leng husk from taking off his head next. The Reaper-possessed abomination pinned Shepard by planting one of its clawed feet on his chest and pressing down hard. Shepard responded by slashing at the foot with his Omni-Blade, almost cutting it clean off and forcing the monster to get off of him.

As his slashed arm continued to trail blood, Shepard rose to his feet and rolled behind the Kai Leng husk, stabbing his omni-blade into its back as hard and fast as he could. Wrenching it out, he slashed again, forcing the Kai Leng husk to stagger back all the more.

Drawing his Particle Rifle, his injured arm screaming in protest as he did, he fired relentlessly at his enemy, the teal-colored beam of energy unrelenting in its assault.

Suddenly breaking off the attack, Shepard re-activated his Tech Armor and charged again, slamming the butt-end of his particle rifle into the Kai Leng husk's skull so hard he completely dislocated the jaw. The Kai Leng husk attempted another strike with a sword hand but Shepard side-stepped out of the way, grabbed the arm, and through a mix of strength, anger, and a chop from the omni-blade, tore the sword arm right off.

Hurling it away, Shepard kicked the Kai Leng husk to the ground and picked up his fallen Particle Rifle. Stomping his foot down hard on the husk's remaining arm so it couldn't fire more shots at him, Shepard put the barrel of his particle rifle right to the Kai Leng husk's head and fired.

The skull was completely and utterly destroyed, and the yellow light in the chest faded away as Harbinger abandoned its now defunct host body. Staring at the now headless, semi-armless, mutilated body of the N7 soldier turned Cerberus operative, Shepard said simply: "This time, _**stay dead**_"

Indeed, what was left of the body disintegrated into black ash, and Harbinger's yellow holographic form rose from it.

"This is a mere setback" Harbinger said, Shepard detecting what sounded almost like anger lacing its usual dark monotone, which in turn suggested that the Harbinger was more angry with him then its choice of words suggested.

But before anything else could happen, the Harbinger's ghostly form surged toward Shepard and flew into his body, possessing him as it had Kai Leng's corpse. Shepard screamed in pain and agony as he desperately fought to control his mind and body to no avail. Harbinger seized control of him, his eyes becoming yellow, glowing, pupil-less orbs, and yellow glowing veins appearing all over his body. Snarling in pain, Shepard fell to his knees, but nevertheless continued to push himself to keep going. That he could defy Harbinger at all was amazing, but he reasoned that it was because all of Harbinger's past victims were either already dead (Kai Leng) or utterly mindless (the Collectors). Shepard was still alive. He still had the will to keep going no matter what. And he was not going to let Harbinger stop him.

So he continued to inch forward, now on his hands and knees, his cut arm still bleeding heavily.

"_You won't be able to do it" _Harbinger hissed, speaking out of Shepard's own mouth. "_Your defeat and death are inevitable. Assured. You __**will **__succumb"_

In nigh unbearable pain but still refusing to give up, Shepard kept crawling, gritting his teeth and managing a small pained smirk.

"Is that…anger…I'm hearing? Am I becoming a bit more then just a nuisance to you?"

"_You are __**nothing.**__" _The Harbinger growled, confirming Shepard's suspicions. He had finally managed to piss the Reaper's leader off. "_**LESS **__than nothing! You and your entire race are but a resource to us! NOTHING MORE! You __**will **__succumb to your fate, you __**will **__cease your attempts at resistance, __**AND YOU WILL DIE!**__"_

Shepard's pained grin grew wider still. The almighty and superior leader of the Reapers had turned out to not be quite so high and mighty after all. In spite of his intense pain and a continued struggle for control of his own body, he couldn't resist rubbing it in: "You know…everything I've been through, everything that's happened…it was all worth it just to see you finally get pissed off"

The Harbinger said nothing in response to this, but then Shepard felt his good arm reaching out for his fallen Tempest. Picking it up, Shepard looked on in horror as the Harbinger forced him to bring the Tempest to his head.

_"I will end this" _the Harbinger growled. _"I will end the nuisance you have become forever. And then I will inflict an eons long torment on your friends and their species. All who follow you will die a thousand deaths. All who follow you will suffer for aiding you in your futile displays of defiance"_

Shepard continued to struggle but he was finally beginning to lose out. The Tempest came closer and closer to his head, and try as he might Shepard couldn't fend it off.

_No. This can't be the end. It __**won't **__be the end! Not like this, never like this…_

Shepard continued to struggle, remembering as he did all of his friends who he had said his good-byes to, promising many of them to come back. He again remembered Miranda, and vowing to return to find her. Assuring her that he would come back, and that they could finally be together. He thought about Earth and how he had already let it down once and couldn't bear to do so again…

Shepard felt himself be tackled to the ground. Looking up, he saw that Anderson had pinned him and had wrenched the Tempest out of his hand. The second he successfully disarmed Shepard he ran up to the control panel and began to access it.

_"You will not succeed!" _Harbringer growled through Shepard's mouth. _"You will __**never **__succeed."_

Anderson made a humorless smile. "Watch me."

Harbinger roared in fury and his ghostly form left Shepard's injured body behind, surging towards Anderson in a desperate attempt to possess him and stop him.

But in the end he was too slow.

The whole Citadel began to shake, letting Shepard know that the arms of the station had been opened at last. It was only a matter of time now before the Crucible was delivered and activated, as it had already been delivered right to the Citadel's doorstep.

Harbinger roared in anger again.

_"__**YOU MUST DIE!"**_

"I think I'll pass" Anderson said bluntly, running forward to help Shepard to his feet. Racing out of the control panel room with him, Anderson led Shepard back out into the bottom floors of the Citadel, but even there they could both see what was transpiring:

Out in space a massive bluish-white wave of energy burst out of the Crucible, now attached to the Citadel that was its catalyst. The blast surged through the skies, striking every single Reaper it could, each one emitting red electricity and stopping dead still upon being struck. The wave continued unrelentingly, first striking and shutting down all the Reapers in orbit above Earth, and then going further still, past the Citadel's mass relay and into the rest of the galaxy. It continued to expand unrelentingly, hitting and shutting down any and every single Reaper that it struck.

Finally, after it had covered the entire Milky Way Galaxy and struck every single Reaper it could it continued on still, un-halting as it surged forward into the unmapped sections of the universe.

As Shepard and Anderson slowly made their ways to the upper levels of the Citadel, the Reapers just continued to float in space, utterly motionless. Needless to say, this left them easy targets for what remained of Sword, and they destroyed several Reapers with an unrelenting torrent of fire, finding as they did that their shields were gone, and so like Sovereign before them, were easy prey now that their invulnerability was gone.

But then, the other Reapers began to emit more electrical sparks, which started out small enough before quickly getting violent and consuming the entirety of the Reapers before they suddenly exploded in massive blue fireballs that were blinding to look at it, even from down on the Citadel's bottom-most floors.

It all happened so quickly: every single Reaper that wasn't destroyed by the remnants of Sword would become consumed in the electricity and then explode, several at a time. As the last Reapers began to suffer this fate, Shepard could see one Reaper, larger than the others with a yellow glow in the center, also be consumed with red electricity before then being consumed in an explosion almost reminiscent of a supernova minus the destructive force. As it exploded, Shepard could hear the Harbinger's voice in his head, letting out a roar of absolute pain, agony and fury the likes of which Shepard had never experienced before then ceasing completely, his head quieting as Harbinger's dying screams faded away.

It was then that Shepard knew once and for all that Harbinger and the Reapers were no more.

"Son of a bitch…" Anderson said breathlessly. "We actually did it. We beat them. They're all dead"

"Yeah…" Shepard said. He was so dazed, so injured, so weary, and so shell-shocked that his mind couldn't focus on one thing or another. Didn't have any time to consider the ramifications of what had just happened. He just stared blankly into space as Anderson continued to help him along.

"Shepard?"

Shepard remained silent. He thought about his friends. Wondering if some or all of them had been killed before the Reapers were finally annihilated. Wondering if Garrus would be in that bar in Heaven alone. If Javik had joined his race in death. If Jack had had to see her students be vaporized or die to save them. He wondered if any of Knife had survived or if they were all dead just like the Hammer strike team. Finally his thoughts did settle on one thing, drifting to Miranda. She was somewhere down there, fighting desperately against the Reapers, he knew it. He hoped that she at least had not died. He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he had stopped the Reapers only to then find out that the woman he loved hadn't made it.

Finally, Shepard and Anderson made it to the Presidium, which was now littered with the bodies of defunct Reaper servants and the people they had murdered. The survivors, members of every species and including several faces that Shepard recognized, had holed up in the C-Sec room, all of them completely confused and clueless as to what was going on.

Anderson and Shepard ignored them and went straight to the elevator. Sighing in relief upon finding that it still worked, Anderson set it to the docking areas. Making their way to the communications room, Anderson attempted to raise Admiral Hackett.

"_*static* _I'm barely gett-*_static*-_ts your status?"

"This is Anderson, we're alive. Shepard and I activated the Crucible. We're at the Citadel, hangar level!"

_*static*-_derstood, I'll send some_*static* _down to get you. Hackett out"

Anderson nodded approvingly and turned to Shepard: "Alliance ships are coming in to pick us up. It's over Shepard. We've won"

Shepard nodded. "Yes…its…over."

The war with the Reapers was anyway, but that didn't mean there were no loose ends…  
-X-  
As Shepard and Anderson returned to Earth, he could see clearly that most of the forces present were in the same state of catatonic disbelief that he was in.

By all rights they should all be celebrating, screaming in joy and applauding their heroes for saving the day and everyone's lives. But it had been so hard-fought, so fierce, so touch-and-go, that right now it seemed that no one could fully accept that it was actually over. That they had actually beaten the Reapers and lived to fight another day.

The ship Shepard and Anderson were in made its way down to the nearest medical site. As it did Shepard could see that as had been the case on the Citadel, all of the Reaper forces had fallen down dead with their masters gone. The Reapers had been the puppet-masters pulling their strings, and now that they were rubble floating in space their minions had no one to control them. The connection had been severed.

Shepard saw one irate Krogan stomp on a dead Marauder's head and couldn't help but smile as he flattened it.  
-X-  
As Shepard lay in his cot, his old friend Doctor Chakwas treating him, he was totally silent, his thoughts primarily on Miranda but also on his various friends.

"I can't believe it…" Chakwas said. "We actually did it…"

"Did you ever doubt me?" Shepard asked teasingly.

"Of course not. Its just…well, its over now. And you and I are still alive, along with many others besides. That's more than enough"

Shepard nodded. "I couldn't agree more"

"Anyway" Chakwas said, quickly returning to business. "Whatever injured your arm, it was a deep cut, and across the entire limb no less. You're lucky you were brought to me when you were. It will heal, but not for a while. And there will always be a scar, that I cannot fix."

"But will I ever have full use of it again doc?"

Chakwas sighed. "Well…yes, eventually, but don't be surprised if it aches and pains if you push it too hard"

Shepard nodded. Normally he would be more concerned about something like that given his line of work, but as it was, the Reapers were no more and he had specifically told Garrus before the final battle that his galaxy-saving days were done once they were dead.

"As for your other injuries, well, the burn marks and lacerations are severe, but you'll recover in time. I would recommend that you walk as little as possible though"

Shepard nodded in understanding. "So I'm confined to a wheelchair for a while then?"

"More or less."

"I think I can live with that"

"One last thing…" Chakwas said, her tone becoming greatly concerned.

"Yes?"

"When Harbinger hit you with its blast…well, most of the injuries as I said while moderate to severe will heal, there is something you should be aware of: the blast left you with radiation-based damage. Now before you say anything I have no idea what this means for you until I examine you further, but the worst case scenario is radiation poisoning and death, with sterility as another possible risk."

"What are the odds of any of this happening?" Shepard asked. "And is there any hope of curing or at least treating it?"

"Well yes…and no. Depending on the severity, it's a hopeless case. Medical science is advanced these days but its not magic. That said I doubt that your case is anywhere close to that level of severity. Again, I'll need to take a closer look but in the meantime don't concern yourself too much over it commander"

"I just got told that I could be dead or sterile and you don't want me to worry?"

"Let's not rush to conclusions. While the amount of radiation you were embedded with was high, I wouldn't lay down the verdict just yet. It might very well be curable"

"Guess I'll just have to keep my finger crossed" Shepard said simply.  
-X-  
As the days went by, Shepard found himself thinking more and more how it was good that he returned to Earth when he had.

The death toll was incalculable. It wasn't determined exactly how many had been killed, but it was bad. Millions at best, billions at worst. Several cities had been completely leveled, their entire populations wiped out, save a small few if they were lucky. Families torn apart, innocents slaughtered. Children left as orphans. The usual horrors of war only in greater amounts than usual.

Still, rebuilding had already begun, led by those who had helped design the Crucible. And the other species pitched in as well.

But there was still the problem of the Citadel. According to the Salarian Councilor Valern, the only one of the three to survive the Reaper's occupation, the majority of the survivors had sealed themselves off in the Refugee sector to make a final stand. With Bailey and Kolyat leading them they waged a small war of attrition, and managed to keep the Reaper forces at bay, but Valern also noted that the Reapers seemed far more concerned with something else, and that if they had focused their efforts to any degree, then they would all be dead. But the Reapers preoccupation with what Shepard knew was them trying to sabotage his attempts to stop them as well as the possible construction of a human-Reaper had kept them from killing everyone on the Citadel.

But while the Refugee Sector had held and there had been some survivors in the Presidium Commons, the rest of the Citadel's population was not so lucky it seemed. No one knew exactly what had happened to the Huerta Memorial Hospital, but there were no communications of any kind, so all assumed the worst. Many other floors, including the floor that contained the Purgatory bar, lied in total ruins, with everyone who had been there dead at the time.

_Omega may be needing new leadership... _Shepard mused.

Shepard knew that it was bad enough that so many innocent people had died on that station. What made it even worse was that the Citadel was the heart of the galactic community. With it out of commission, even temporarily, things would be a lot harder to manage. If it wasn't rectified quickly enough, then the various alien governments would just decide to look out for themselves, and all of the alliances Shepard had painstakingly formed would disintegrate. He didn't want that to happen.

"Still have the weight of the galaxy on your shoulders?"

Shepard whipped around at the familiar Australian voice and saw her standing there, in the doorway. She was still clad in her usual attire, minus the Cerberus logo, her face untarnished by any injuries or dirt and looking as beautiful as ever, if not also positively exhausted. In her eyes Shepard saw more warmth then he had ever seen before in them before.

Shepard got up and surged forward towards Miranda, who smiled lightly.

"Shepard, its so good to—"

Shepard cut her off by kissing her as hard and passionately as he ever had before, clutching her tightly to him as he did so. She made no attempt at resistance but rather reciprocated, moaning in contentment as he continued to kiss her deeply and with as much passion as he could muster.

Finally, after the time came to take in oxygen, their lips parted, but then he immediately locked lips with her again, unceasing in his passion before she put a hand to his chest and gently pushed him back, a silent request for some space. Shepard did so but their faces were still inches apart.

"As I was saying" Miranda whispered smiling "its so good to see you again Shepard"

"Likewise Miranda"

"I can't believe it. I can't believe we actually won…"

"We did. And you and I can finally have a life together Miranda"

"I…I don't know Shepard…there's still so much to do…so much to rebuild…"

"Yes, yes there is" Shepard agreed, remembering all too well how many lives had been lost throughout the course of this, had many planets had been left irrevocably scarred. The rebuilding would take years, decades if things went really poorly. But Shepard had faith. And besides, that wouldn't stop him from being with his lover.

"I told you on the Citadel Miranda. Things are never going to be easy for either of us…but I'll _**always **_want you in my life"

Miranda nodded. "I know Shepard. And I want to be with you too…"

Her expression became one that was hard for Shepard to decipher. He asked: "Is there something else Miranda?"

"Yes. Yes there is…Shepard…I'm…."

She looked to one side before turning back to face him and saying, a faint smile appearing on her face: "Shepard, I'm pregnant"  
-X-  
_His mind flashed back to several months ago. It was after he had learned that Miranda couldn't have children. He had consoled her. Assured her that he would stay with her regardless. But he had also gone to Mordin and Chakwas for help. Because he could see just how desperately she wanted to be a mother. So he chose to find some way to help her. Some way to give her that which she so desperately desired._

_Mordin had said that a final definitive conclusion could only be achieved if Miranda consented to a procedure. It hadn't been the most fun moment of his life, and definitely hadn't been his best conversation with her, but he had finally convinced her to try it, which also further showed just how badly she wanted this. She would risk anything just to get the chance to hold a child in her arms._

_And so going in without any hope whatsoever for success and with Shepard at her side, Miranda consented to an examination. Shortly after it had been done, Mordin and Chakwas told Shepard that Miranda's infertility was in fact, curable, but would require an operation. As the problem lied with her benign neoplasm, surgery would be required to remove the tumor. And thus, Shepard had to ask Miranda to once again subject herself to a procedure, and this time it was far more risky, but as it was the two best doctors he had ever known doing it, he had a faith that Miranda would at least live through it no matter how unsuccessful._

_"I'm not going to lie Miranda" he had said. "There is a risk involved. So I need to know: do you think its worth it?"_

_She had remained silent for the longest time after he asked her that. Finally she told him that she needed to think about it. And so, days passed, which turned into weeks, until finally, not long before he returned to Earth to surrender to the Alliance she agreed to do it, which further confirmed just how much she wanted this. But if she didn't he wouldn't have done any of it. Wouldn't have put her through any of it._

_He remembered her preparing for it, joking about how now it was he who was going to oversee an operation on her._

_"Everything's come full circle" she remarked, chuckling._

_Shepard had placed a hand on her. "Don't worry Miranda. We'll get through this. And I meant what I said to you on Hagalaz: I will always want you in my life, children or no children"_

_Miranda nodded and she and Shepard shared a kiss before the operation began._

_"Thanks Shepard"_

Shepard's mind flashed back to the present, a smile forming on his mouth. For a moent he said nothing before finally speaking up: "So I'm going to be a father I take it?"

Miranda made a sly smirk, not unlike the one she had made when they had reunited on the Citadel a while back. "If you're up to the challenge comman-"

Shepard cut her off with another deep passionate kiss.

"Damn right I am"  
**2 Years Later.**

Shepard admired his new Blood Dragon Armor. It was exactly the same as the set he had lost on Earth. After everything he'd done for Earth and for the galaxy, Edmonton Blood Dragons had been happy to make it for him free of any charge.

"Admiring your look commander?" a familiar voice asked in a sultry tone, saying the last part especially playfully. Shepard chuckled.

"What can I say? I like this armor"

"Yes well, it suits you. Now you're really my knight in shining armor"

"As if you needed one" Shepard snarked back. Miranda chuckled. "No I suppose not"

Shepard turned to see her on the view-screen. He wasn't with her right now, as they both had jobs in separate locations. Miranda was sitting in an all-too familiar looking office that had now been…redesigned, which included among other things the dying star giving off a pure blue glow, as it had when Shepard confronted the Illusive Man after destroying the Collector Base. She was clad in a skin-tight suit very similar to her usual attire, but a dark blue near black color with some orange instead of the white and black of her usual catsuit, a white logo resembling a stylized wing where the Cerberus logo had been on her older outfit. Admittedly, Shepard preferred said older outfit, but her current uniform was still a pleasant sight and in any event, Miranda was the kind of woman who would look good in the clothes of an Omega street-urchin.

"And how are things going at Cronos Station, "Miss Shepard?" Shepard asked cheekily.

Miranda smiled, her eyes briefly falling to the diamond ring she now wore on her finger. "Fine, thank you for asking. It does get lonely in this room sometimes, but that's what these calls to you are for"

"What about Jane?"

Miranda smiled and nodded. "Yes, there's Jane too"

Shepard smiled. Jane was his gift to Miranda. His gift to both of them. She was everything Miranda had always wanted and more. It made Shepard happy to know that no matter what happened to him, Miranda would always have the daughter she never thought she could have.

"Your mother is taking care of her while I'm…busy at work. But I should be able to see her again soon"

"Take care of her while I'm away. And be sure to tell her that her father loves her"

"Always"

"See you soon director of Pegasus" Shepard said playfully.

Miranda nodded. "I love you"

"I know. I love you too"

And with that, Shepard waved good-bye to his wife for now and turned off the view-screen. His gaze turned to a new picture in his cabin, that of him and Miranda together, the latter holding their daughter in her arms. Even less than two years old she had already gotten a fair bit of freckles, and her green eyes were really something to behold. They had a piercing effect to them, almost like the looks Miranda used to give him way back during her "Ice Queen" days.

"You know, Miranda was one really cranky pregnant lady" Shepard heard Garrus say as he walked over towards him. "Of course I've heard its the same with most human women"

Shepard smiled at his old friend but said nothing in response.

"How's she doing Shepard?"

"Well. Since taking over the Illusive Man's assets and remaining resources along with her father's wealth she's been using them well. Been spearheading mercy missions and providing aid relief to worlds still scarred by the Reapers"

Garrus nodded in approval. "A kinder, gentler Cerberus. Never thought I'd live to see the day"

"There's a lot of things I'd never thought _I'd_live to see" Shepard replied simply. "And yet I've already checked most of them off my list. And once the galaxy's finally healed fully I plan on finishing up"

"Oh? And what would that include?"

"Oh, taking the Normandy past the known galaxy, exploring the unexplored" Shepard said matter-of-factly. He could see Garrus stare at him blankly.

"I'm serious by the way"

"Right, and I can eat human food without having a seizure" Garrus shook his head. "Just when I thought you couldn't surprise me anymore"

"What can I say? My parents were spacers. I was born and raised as one. I guess its in the blood. You planning on walking out?"

Garrus shook his head. "Hell no. Like you said back on Earth: there's no Shepard without Vakarian. So even if you do something irredeemably stupid, like flying our ship blindly into the unknown void, I'm with you"

Shepard couldn't help but smile at that. "Thanks Garrus. So…I take it you didn't just come by to say hello?"

Garrus shook his head. "No, I came to tell you that Hackett's got a new assignment for us. Something about helping more homeless refugees relocate or something"

Shepard nodded. "I'm coming". As he did, he shot one last look at the picture of him, Miranda, and Jane and smiled. They had done it. They had not only won, but found a reason to do so. They had found happiness together, and gotten that which they had previously thought was unobtainable.

As Shepard donned his helmet and left with Garrus, he knew that his daughter Jane Shepard would live in a better galaxy.

**Author's Note: Holy crap. Well, that was epic huh? Think I'll say a few things:**

**I don't understand why some people are criticizing other Mass Effect fans for wanting a happy ending or treating a happy ending like it's a bad thing. Why should it be? After all, if you played a hardcore Paragon Shepard (as I did) and played your cards right, then why shouldn't you be able to see the fruits of your labor? After all, the whole point of ME is making choices and seeing the consequences of those choices, good **_**and **_**bad. That's (one of) the reasons why the actual endings were terrible and also why an ending where your good choices are rewarded should not be considered wrong. So yes, this is a happy ending, but I feel that it is a believable happy ending at the very least.**

**Yes, I know its "Sword" and "Hammer" but I figured that knife made more sense. After all, its purpose is to be the group that goes down to Earth while the bigger, more obvious threat engages the Reapers. It's the unexpected weapon if you would. I don't know about you, but a knife seems like a better surprise weapon then a hammer. Still, I figured that the Alliance Marines anyway could be named Hammer.**

**I'm also aware that Shepard only has a pistol in the actual ending, but I figured that his weapons could stay intact even if his armor didn't.**

**And yes, I cured Miranda's infertility. I went back and forth on whether or not I should do that, but in the end I decided to go for it. I mean, I figured that if anyone could fix it, Mordin Solus and Chakwas working together could. And besides, I actually do sympathize with Miranda. It was clear from her file that she desperately wants to be a mother, (if you read the other stuff in her file you'll see what I mean) and she's already had to deal with her share of crap, so I decided to throw the dog a bone so to speak. And she **_**is **_**my favorite female party member. And finally, yes, their daughter is an intentional reference to the default female Shepard.**

**Anyway, that's everything. I hope you all enjoyed my own ending to the amazing Mass Effect trilogy. At the very least I hope it was better than the actual endings used.**

**Hail Bioware!**


End file.
